• 文献标题:   Understanding flow enhancement in graphene-coated nanochannels
  • 文献类型:   Article, Proceedings Paper
  • 作  者:   JIN YK, TAO R, LI ZG
  • 作者关键词:   flow enhancement, graphenecoated nanochannel, nanofluidic
  • 出版物名称:   ELECTROPHORESIS
  • ISSN:   0173-0835 EI 1522-2683
  • 通讯作者地址:   Hong Kong Univ Sci Technol
  • 被引频次:   7
  • DOI:   10.1002/elps.201800465
  • 出版年:   2019

▎ 摘  要

In this work, we investigate pressure-driven water flows in graphene-coated copper nanochannels through molecular dynamics simulations. It is found that the flow rate in bare copper nanochannel can be significantly enhanced by a factor of 45 when the nanochannel is coated with monolayer graphene. The enhancement factor for the flow rate reaches about 90 when the nanochannel is modified with 3 or more graphene layers. The dipole relaxation time and the hydrogen bond lifetime of interfacial water molecules show that the graphene coating promotes the mobility of water molecules at the interface. The distribution of the potential of mean force and the free energy barriers also confirm that graphene coating reduces the flow resistance and 3 layers of graphene can fully screen the surface effects. The results in this work provide important information for the design of graphene-based nanofluidic systems for flow enhancement.